The coffin of RAF veteran Harold Percival is carried into Lytham Park Crematorium as hundreds of attendees watch on (Picture: Nigel Roddis/Getty Images)

An RAF veteran who died with no close friends or relatives has been given a fitting and poignant send-off, after an online campaign saw hundreds of people attend his funeral, which was itself marked by the Dambusters theme being played as his coffin was carried into the chapel.

Speaking after the service, Mr Percival’s nephew Andre Collyer-Worsell, said: ‘It’s just staggering. It just shows how great the British public are. We were expecting a few people, a few local veterans but suddenly it snowballed. It’s the sort of send-off you would want to give any loved one. It’s very emotional.’

A floral tribute to Mr Percival as hundreds of strangers turned up to pay their respects (Picture: Darren Staples/Reuters)

Mr Percival died peacefully in a nursing home, and Edmund Jacobs, the funeral director, said: ‘I didn’t fancy the idea of an old serviceman going out on his last journey without any support.’

Lytham community choir will sing Jerusalem and Harold Percival's coffin will arrive to the Dambusters theme. pic.twitter.com/VjtpIvFanY